How Toyota Hyryder made me a more sedate driver in 1 month

Somehow I have started trying to be in the EV mode or to extract maximum fuel efficiency.

BHPian baarish84 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Change in my driving style

I have been driving Toyota Hyryder strong hybrid V variant for the last month and have completed 1200 km. I have observed that I have started driving more sedately, intentionally to extract the maximum possible fuel efficiency.

As a background for my daily driving conditions, my office is 20 km from my home. In the morning, there is free-flowing traffic on Mumbai's eastern express highway with an average speed of 50 kmph. In the evening, traffic is comparatively slow-paced.

My annual running for the last 10 years of driving has been between 10k to 12k with 90% running within city limits. AC is running 100% of the time.

Earlier, I used to accelerate or brake fairly aggressively to keep up with the flow of traffic. I am by no means a quick driver, who tailgates the vehicle in front of me. But if a space opens up, I would not hesitate to take it. I used to get 11 kmpl to 12 kmpl then on my Duster. On my Alto, I used to get 15 kmpl to 16 kmpl in similar driving conditions / driving patterns.

Now that I have been driving a hybrid vehicle, it seems the car itself pushes me to be a conservative / frugal driver.

1. RPM gauge is replaced by power band meter. So you always know if you are accelerating too aggressively or economically.
2. HU has this nifty animation display which keeps on telling you whether the car is running on battery or the engine is powering you on. So you subconsciously start letting the battery charge as much as possible.
3. When a car is running on battery, the instrument cluster / HUD displays quite boldly tell that you are cruising in EV mode. The car becomes quieter and more serene.

Somehow, I have started trying to be in EV mode or to extract maximum fuel efficiency. Even if a space opens up, I try to accelerate gradually.

As of now, I am getting overall fuel efficiency of 20.5 kmpl in city traffic. Trying to push that number to 21 and then to 22. A few days back, came across a youtube video about the "pulse and glide" method of driving Hybrids. Have tried it a few times, although felt difficult to master so far.

Would like to know about FE numbers of other strong hybrid owners driving in the city.

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